The week rolled over quite quickly and after watching the pack train and glaring at them every so often, Doctor Heath and Clarissa finally found me fit and healed enough to rejoin the training. I was specifically told to be careful of my shoulder but other than that I could start training again!I wondered what we'd be doing today, maybe more drills or activities, I heard a rumour that we'd be doing a capture-the-flag type game at some point, defending territories and invading others, there were enough of us to have like three teams. That would be fun!Annabelle was still quietly hinting that she wanted to see my wolf. I had been able to put it off so far by telling her I was still healing. The pack were told that I suffered a broken arm, something that was notoriously difficult to heal, even with a strong wolf. Poppy's broken nose still hadn't healed properly so it wasn't too bad of an excuse. So with that, Annabelle understood why I was reluctant to shift so didn’t push too much, b
The room fell into a flurry of questions and accusations, mainly pointed my way. As soon as the words left Jackson’s mouth, the heads of each faction looked my way and I could feel the suspicion fall my way.“Who?” Doctor Heath asked, being one of the only people to not accuse me.“Who do you think?” Alexis scoffed. Whilst Annabelle had been training me, Alexis kept a close eye on me despite maintaining a distance.“Is that why she’s here, Alpha, so we can lock her up?”Poppy snarled with a pre-emptive grin on her face, “I always knew she was a two-faced bitch.” She looked like she’d had some kind of victory over me and was just waiting for Jackson to give the word and have me carted away.Maybe a few weeks ago I might have thought he would, but after everything we shared and what he offered, I didn’t believe that was his intention in the slightest. I was here for a reason and it was not to be humiliated or forced into guilt.Throughout all the chatter and arguing, Jackson slammed his
Everyone turned to look at Clarissa, and I felt my body go rigid. She promised me that she hadn’t told Jackson or anyone else about the surgeries or the fact that I couldn't feel my wolf, and if she spilled that secret in front of everyone, I didn’t know how I was ever going to forgive her.I did my best not to look at Jackson because even the slightest of movements might have given me away or raised his suspicions again.“Blessed Silver?!” Alexis spluttered, “Where on earth did you get Blessed Silver.”Clarissa narrowed her eyes at Alexis like a lion ready for murder, her magic began to flow from her body from the anger and lift her hair slightly. I could’ve sworn her eyes began to glow an electric colour, “And why is that any of your business, wolf?”Alexis snarled, feeling the challenge in the air from Clarissa’s power and Abel seemed to acknowledge it too, his fingernails growing and creaking against the wooden table.“As we are all aware,” Jackson interrupted them with impatience
“Hey, are you okay? You’ve been quiet for a while,” Annabelle mumbled softly as we left the Mess Hall to go to the next training session.I’d skipped the past few sessions because I just didn’t have the energy or hope for it the last few weeks. I’d still visited Annabelle and met with Clarissa, but something in me had deflated. My mind would drift back to my shoulder and the feelings that came with it. I knew that Clarissa would resume the surgeries soon, but it wasn’t soon enough and there had been no updates on the traitor.“Yeah, sorry I’m just feeling a bit down,” I replied softly. Some days it was difficult to get out of bed, but something in me today told me to stop feeling sorry for myself and I decided I wanted to start my training again. I needed to keep up my stamina and strength and at the very least a routine would help make me feel steadier. “Are you sure? Ever since the meeting you-”“I’m fine, Annabelle, promise.” I tried to give her the best smile I could but I think
The team was an array of different people from the pack. Some were big and buff, others were short and fast, some looked like they were new to training and there was Poppy, looking at her nails with one of her friends fanning her in case she was too hot.I couldn’t help but wonder if this team was fucked.I'd seen some of these people in other training exercises and it was definitely a mixed bag. There might have been the smallest of chances if we worked together. But if Christian and Jackson had taken part in this training there was no telling what would happen.But I had to admit, as much as I hated being around her, Poppy was less likely to attack me if we were a part of the same team. Or at the very least there were more witnesses if she tried anything. I remembered how she had surrounded me during our Hunter and Prey training and I didn’t want to be put in that position again. I doubted her friends would be so quick to abandon her this time,We had fifteen minutes to come up with
I concentrated on listening to every twig that snapped and every leaf that rustled just in case anyone was trying to attack our flag through this route I was guarding. During my time at the tree, I could hear howling and yelping, which made me wonder how well my team was doing. Had they been able to capture a flag yet?It was boring where I stood, but without a wolf, it was where I knew I’d be the most useful and most protected. The second I saw a person or wolf from another team, I could yell, and my voice would travel to the ears of my group. Jackson had purposefully not told us how long this challenge would go on for so that we would stay alert and conserve our energy, this could end at any second or go on for as long as hours. The sun had told me an hour or so had passed by the time things had gotten interesting. I had climbed the tree every so often to get a better glimpse of my surroundings but I didn’t stay up very long because Doctor Heath had told me too intensive work cou
I was dreaming again. I had gotten used to my dreams being so vivid and lifelike that it hardly phased me anymore. I could feel the difference between my regular dreams and whatever these were. It was like a feeling was telling me to pay attention, to look further into what I was being shown.That feeling had gotten stronger ever since the first piece of Blessed Silver had left my body. Maybe it was my wolf trying to tell me something. I stopped questioning these dreams a little while ago. I didn’t like what I was being shown this time, though to be fair I never really liked what I saw.I was back at the New Moon pack again, but this time I wasn’t in the Pack House. No. This time I was back home.My heart ached to see the house I’d been so familiar with, the house I grew up in, the house I saw my family’s murders. It looked different this time. Like it was newer. I wondered if someone had been moved into that house now since there was no one left to inhabit it. Maybe they’d painted,
“My Lady,” my father started, still holding me close to his chest. It is an honour to have you in our home.”The Moon Goddess smiled and placed a hand on my father’s shoulder before shocking everyone as she got to her knees too and held her arms out for the pup in my father’s arms.He hesitated, debating on whether to hand me over or not. He wondered whether the Moon Goddess would take me away. He didn’t care if she was a goddess, he would protect me. The Moon Goddess only smiled more kindly, not moving to force the pup from my father.My mother looked between them and gave my father a small nod, she trusted the Moon Goddess with me. So with a small breath, my father handed me over. The pup that was me whimpered as she left the comfort of her father’s arms, but The Moond Goddes waved her hand and the little wolf’s eyes became heavy and she yawned loudly before snugging into the welcoming arms of the goddess and falling asleep.My parents gaped, but my brother, thinking she had done so
Elise’s POVFrom the second I woke up I was pampered by Clarissa and Annabelle who seemed to be more excited than me for the Luna Ceremony, which was saying a lot considering I was jittering with nerves and excitement. I never expected to accept this kind of arrangement so quickly but it just felt like the right thing to do. I wanted this ceremony to happen, I wanted to officially be Jackson’s mate for the world to see and be the Luna of this amazing pack that I now called family.Annabelle shoved me into a large bath filled with so many bubbles, salts and essential oils that I didn’t think the smell of lilies and roses would ever leave my skin.Then they pulled me into a chair as they dried and styled my hair for what seemed like hours, not in a negative way because the two of them made me laugh as we took photos and told funny stories. They curled my hair so it fell like a wave against my back before they braided and tied it so I looked like a blonde Celtic princess.The makeup came
Jackson's POVAfter we managed to get some kind of normalcy in the pack, there was still an air of stress and anxiety. We had multiple members of Fredrick’s pack join us and made sure we kept them far away from the dungeons and monitored them sufficiently just in case anyone tried to break Fredrick and the others out.“The guards and warriors won’t be too rough with them, will they?” Elise asked the last time I saw her, clutching my arm as she watched some of the refugees being directed to their houses looking terrified.I shook my head in assurance, “No, they have strict orders to treat them carefully unless they prove to be a threat, even then they are to take them down with as much force as is necessary and take them to the dungeon.”No one had seemed to try to convince any of my guards to let them pass into the dungeon or even look that way. Instead, they looked somewhat relieved to know that their former alpha was imprisoned there. Nor did they try to fight my pack. Elise was rig
Elise's POVIt was strange walking through the dungeon, free and in charge rather than as a prisoner. I’d been held captive twice in two different dungeons and had to admit that I wasn’t a fan. Maybe that was because I hadn’t deserved it, but neither had the people who got experimented on at Fredrick’s hand. I felt no sympathy or empathy for the ex-alpha as we reached his cell.There were five guards posted in the dungeons, two to watch Fredrick, two to watch Melanie and one to watch Poppy. They all seemed serious and offered Jackson, Christian and me a bow of respect before immediately resuming their posture and attention.As we rounded to Fredrick’s cell, I had to stop and stare.He looked terrible, not the large, imposing alpha who made everyone tremble at just the mention of his name. His clothes were dirty and ripped, his hair was a greasy mess and he looked like a feral animal. I never thought it was possible to see him looking so pathetic and powerless.I noticed the large amou
Elise's POVJackson asked if I wanted to move into the Pack House before the Luna Ceremony and I accepted. But before I could do that, I wanted to go back to the house I’d lived in when I first came to the pack. Before I could move into somewhere new, I wanted to say goodbye.I hadn’t lived in that house long, but it was the first thing that was mine and held a lot of memories like first connecting with Annabelle and Christian, the movie nights with Annabelle and just a general sense of safety and security.“I can go with you if you want,” Jackson offered when I first brought up the idea. “No, thank you,” I said softly, smiling at him, “I don’t have much to move… It’s just to say goodbye.”He didn’t argue or protest, he simply gave me a kiss on the cheek before I headed off.As I walked through the pack, I couldn’t help but reminisce how everything was different now. The first time I was newly out of chains and was being escorted to my new home by Christian. Everyone looked at me war
Elise's POV It was a question we’d all been dreading and I knew that it was partially my fault. If it wasn’t for me then Fredrick would be dead in the dirt and the packs would have one less thing to worry about. But he wasn’t dead and though I knew it was the right decision I also knew that a lot of the other wolves, both in the council room or not would find it difficult to understand.“With all due respect, Luna, would you mind explaining further as to why we can’t kill him?” Doctor Heath asked me, treating me like his luna already though we hadn’t had the ceremony yet. The others might have been saying it out of respect but I knew that Doctor Heath had meant it. He had been one of my first friends when I came here and he'd helped me through so much that I could never thank him enough for it.“I know it’s hard to believe, but a long time ago my family were blessed by The Moon Goddess.”I paused, waiting for some kind of negative reaction. Encountering The Moon Goddess was rare and
Elise's POVI was sat at the council’s table, no longer the shy, timid outsider I had been the first few times I’d come to the council room. As I entered the room, they all stared at me, but not in the way the first had with suspicion and anger. No, this time as I entered, they all stood from their seats. I didn’t know what to expect since Jackson wanted me to enter first, but as I stepped further into the room, the heads of each faction and their subordinates placed a hand on their hearts and bowed their heads in respect.They’d heard what happened on the battlefield and they knew Jackson had claimed me as his luna, so that meant I was theirs as well.I sucked in a deep breath as I realised that what they were doing was accepting me. One of my worries when I accepted Jackson as my mate and my place as his luna was that the pack wouldn’t want me. It frightened me that they would just see me as a rogue who seduced their alpha and caused a big mess. I was more worried that his choice wo
Elise's POVFor the first time in a while, I slept comfortably in a bed and more importantly I was entwined in the arms of someone I loved.After Jackson woke up and we shared a passionate kiss, Clarissa told us that we still needed to rest. Christian had recovered from his injuries and had taken to governing the pack whilst we healed properly. Jackson didn’t mind that, he liked spending time with me, watching over me and making sure I was okay whilst I did the same thing to him.From what it seemed like, we were both completely fine aside from some exhaustion and aches and pains, but Clarissa was still adamant we needed to rest.I wasn’t complaining.Though Jackson seemed to be quite restless. So much had piled up during his time away to rescue me. He had so many letters to answer and duties to attend to and I knew his instincts were in an inner turmoil as he wanted to lead his pack but wanted to make sure his mate was okay.At the end of our third day free from the infirmary, we wer
Jackson's POV My eyes cracked open and I groaned as I tried to move. Yeah, definitely wasn’t dead. There was a sharp pain in my chest like my heart had been ripped out, but obviously, it was still there, pounding away like nothing had changed. I placed a hand over my chest, feeling the steady heartbeat through my body and letting my body relax to that soothing feeling.As my vision returned to normal, I saw that I was lying on a bed and staring up at a familiar ceiling of white. I’d been in this building enough times to recognise it. I was in the infirmary back in my pack.I sucked in a deep breath as I felt tears prick at my eyes. I wasn’t dead. I was home. We’d won. I tried to sit up, struggling to do so but rested against the headrest, feeling a weight on my legs. Elise was there, her arms and head resting on my body. My heart swelled to see her exhausted, sleeping face. Her hair was a mess, sprawled over the mattress like straw. How long had I been asleep and how long had she be
Jackson’s POV It was dark when I opened my eyes and I had no idea where I was. It was like I was floating in space but there was absolutely nothing surrounding me, just an endless tunnel of darkness and isolation.Was I dead?No, no this couldn’t be happening. Even if I was dead I would crawl my way back to earth to save my pack and my mate.“Hello?” I called out, knowing that it was futile, but on the off chance someone could hear me, I did it anyway.When I didn’t get a response, I chose a direction, left or right it didn’t really matter, and started floating that way in the hopes that I’d find something to help me get out from wherever or whatever this place was.Time was strange in this place. I tried counting the minutes in my head but after a certain point, it was like my mind restarted and the counting started again. Even when I tried to keep track of the resets it didn’t matter. My mind was a mess of confusion and fear.This couldn’t have been what the afterlife was like. If